Climate & Radiation: Mission

We investigate atmospheric radiation, both as a driver for climate change and as a tool for the remote sensing of Earth's atmosphere and surface. Our Climate research program seeks to better understand how our planet reached its present state, and how it may respond to future drivers, both natural and anthropogenic.

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Earth News

California ?Rain Debt? Equal to Average Full Year of PrecipitationA new NASA study has concluded California accumulated a debt of about 20 inches of precipitation between 2012 and 2015 -- the average amount expected to fall in the state in a single year. The deficit was driven primarily by a lack of air currents moving inland from the Pacific Ocean that are rich in water vapor.

NASA Hosts ?Quest for Quakes? Data ChallengeA new NASA challenge is looking for evidence to support a theory that electromagnetic pulses (EMP) may precede an earthquake, potentially offering a warning to those in the quake?s path.

NASA Study Finds Indian, Pacific Oceans Temporarily Hide Global WarmingA new NASA study of ocean temperature measurements shows in recent years extra heat from greenhouse gases has been trapped in the waters of the Pacific and Indian oceans. Researchers say this shifting pattern of ocean heat accounts for the slowdown in the global surface temperature trend observed during the past decade.

NASA Hosts Media Day Featuring Airborne Storm MissionNASA will host a media event Saturday, July 11 showcasing Plains Elevated Convection at Night (PECAN), a new multi-agency airborne research campaign currently studying summer storm systems in the U.S. Great Plains.

International Spacecraft Carrying NASA?s Aquarius Instrument Ends OperationsAn international Earth-observing mission launched in 2011 to study the salinity of the ocean surface ended June 8 when an essential part of the power and attitude control system for the SAC-D spacecraft, which carries NASA's Aquarius instrument, stopped operating. The Aquarius instrument successfully achieved its science objectives and completed it